ROCK MUSIC MENU: Hawaii lawmakers pushing Steven Tyler privacy law

By MICHAEL CHRISTOPHER

Thursday, February 21, 2013

You'd never put Steven Tyler up as a squeaky clean ally of the law.

But the Aerosmith singer has lent his name to Hawaii Senate Bill 465, also known as the Steven Tyler Act, which would create a civil cause of action for "constructive invasion of privacy" in the state of Hawaii.

Tyler initiated, and is a proponent and vocal supporter of the bill, which was presented in a Senate hearing in Honolulu, Hawaii earlier this month. The proposed bill (SB465) was modeled after the California Civil Code Section 1708.8, which was adopted by the California state legislature in 1998.

The proposed bill would add a cause of action for constructive invasion of privacy in addition to the current cause of action for physical invasion of privacy in Hawaii. In the simplest terms, the proposed bill would provide a legal remedy for celebrities photographed while they are engaged in "personal or familial activity" and have a reasonable expectation of privacy.

The law would go beyond the more traditional invasion of privacy, which generally requires a physical trespass, by imposing liability on people who use zoom telephonic lenses or other high tech audio devices to capture images or audio of public figures as they are in their homes, or other private places, and then turn around and sell those images or audio files further states the "right of the people to be secure in their persons...against invasions of privacy shall not be violated."

"The paradise of Hawaii is a magnet for celebrities who just want a peaceful vacation," Tyler said in a statement. "As a person in the public eye, I know the paparazzi are there and we have to accept that. But when they intrude into our private space, disregard our safety and the safety of others -- that crosses a serious line that shouldn't be ignored."

What's most interesting is that Tyler allowed his name to be used for the bill after it was drafted by his attorney and manager, leading some to criticize the onetime "American Idol" judge of "making up his own law."